Fire-extinguisher for projecting foam and liquid



. 0. I. HOLMES. FIRE EXTINGUISHER FQR PBOJEGTING FOAM AND LIQUID.

APPLICATION mu) AUG. I9, 1916.

1,361,997, Patented Dec. 14, 1920.

FIG :1 I F162.

'T H 9 16 18 L. I II INvENToR 30 080A?! J. Haunts extinguisher smothering OSCAR J". HOLMES, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSO URI.

FIRE-EXTINGUISHER FOR PROJEGTING FOAM AND LIQUID.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 14, 1920;

Application filed August 19, 1916. Serial No. 115,867.

To all whom 2'25 may concern Be it known that I, OSCAR J. HoLMEs, a citizen of the United States and resident of St. Louis, in the State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fire-Extinguishers for Projecting Foam and Liquid, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to'the accompanying drawin s, forming a part hereof.

/ y invention relates to an improved fire for projecting both a firefoam and a fire-extinguishing liquid, either separately or simultaneously; and my invention consists in the novel construction and combination of parts hereinafterdescribed, and particularly pointed out in the claims hereunto appended,

"The object of my invention is to provide improved means which shall be located in a single fire-apparatus tank (without parvalve, taken on the line 3-3 titions or division therein), for either projecting foam generated in said tank, or the solid stream of liquid, and for projecting from said tank a limited proportion of foam and liquid which the operator fmay desire to be projected, whereby a single fire-apparatus maybe used for extinguishing oil.- fires (or any incipient fire) at close range, with foam; at a greater distancewith a combination of foam and liquid, and at a still greater distance with liquid alone.

1 In the drawings,

' Figure 1 is a vertical section of a fireextinguisher tank, having myinvention applied thereto.

Fig.2 is a detail plan-view of a rotaryvalve, used (in the present illustration of my invention) for controlling the flow from the tank. Fig. 3 is a of foam of said rotaryof Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a detail plan-view of the rotating combined acid-bottle holder foam-valve stem, and the T pipe-conneetionat the upper end of the siphon-pipe, and the foamva-lve as applied thereto in the present indetail section stance, and

Fig. 5 is a detail view, partly in section, of the combined bottle-holder, the bottle, and suitable operating connections.

In the present form of my invention, the numeral 1 designates a rotatable mixingvalve, for controlling the flow of foam from the tank, and which valve has on its back a seat .2 that is U-shaped in cross-section and fixed in place by meansof solder or rivets upon the copper valve 1.

aid valve, in the present case, is a circular'disk ofsheet copper, charge-opening 18, and a central perforation 17 for receiving a pivot-screw 17, by means of which screw the said disk is pivotally mounted upon the adjacent face of an exit-T 3 of the discharge-pipe.

Said discharge-pipe consists of a siphonpipe 11, extending downto a point near the bottom of the tank 9; a strainer; 10 at the lower end of said pipe 11; the said T 3; a return-bend which passes-through an aperture formed in'the breast-22 of the said tank, and is connected with the upper end of said T 3 by means ofa short, extension,

all of the said elements being located, as

shown, upon the interior of said tank.

A suitableflexible hose 12 has one end connected to the outer end-of said returnorries. f

bend 2, and its opposite endfitted with a common nozzle 13 and a shut-off cook having the usual handle 13*, whereby the discharge of foam and solid from said tank can be controlled by the operator.

A commoncap 8 is fitted to the top of the said tank,v in the usual manner, for the purpose of affording access to the interior, of the tank, in charging the same, as well as for purposes of cleaning out the waste material, it being understood (of course) that said cap should be fitted in place in such a manner as to form a tight joint, to prevent leakage ofthegas or liquid. Y I Fitted loosely in the seat 2 pf the said rotary-valve 1 isthe angular-end '2 of the combined valve-stem and bottle-holder 4, the outer portionof which is cylindrical, and ex tends through an aperture formed in the walljof the tank 9, and'thence through a stutfing-box 14 having a' gland 15 and provided with the usual packing 16.

The outer end .of said combined 'valvestemand bottle-holder 4 projects free a distance beyondsaid gland, upon the exterior! of said tank, and 1s fitted with a sultable hand-lever 7, by means of which latterthe device may be rocked or rotated, for purposes hereinafter described in detail. I

The numeral 5 designates the the acidbottle, preferably of glass, and mounted in a circular-seat 5 formed in said revoluble combined bottle-holder and foam-valve stem 4, so that when the latter is rotated the contents of the said bottle will be dumped into the liquid contained in said tank 9, for a purpose hereinafter mentioned.

The said bottle. 5 may be fitted tightly within its said circular-seat 5, so that it will retain its position therein by frictional contact with said seat, or there may be an additional support in the form of a U- shaped wire seat 20, having itsearms fixed to the said circular bottle-seat by being passed through apertures therein and riveted or otherwise secured in place, the said wire passing under the bottom of the said bottle, to'support'the same, as shown in Fig. 5.

Said acid-bottle is fitted with a common cover or stopper 6, which rests loosely in place, so that it will fall from the bottle whenever the latter is inverted and drop to the bottom of said tank, where it can be recovered and used again when the bottle is refilled with acid.

' The operation is as follows:

' In charging the machine, the tank 9 is filled to a point about half-way up tothe top of the bottle 5, with a saturated solution of bicarbonate of soda, with which is I mixed a suitable quantity of any common suitable acid, preferably foam-forming substance, or any sui able viscous soluble-in-water substance, such as extract oflicorice-root, glue, glucose, soaptree bark, &c.

Then the acid-bottle 5 is filledwith any sulfuric acid. [The acid-is thrown into the alkaline solution by turning the handle 7 to a position indicated by dotted lines in Fig. '1, the said bottle being thereby inverted, its coverdrop- 1 ping oif and the acid dropping into and commingling with the liquid in said tank, and instantaneously generating'a large ,vol ume of CH-IbOI11C-Et0ld .gas and creating a heavy pressure in said tank.

ff Foam, or agitation produced by the mixture of the bles will be enlar bonic-acid gas.

bubbles, Will be formed by the acid with the alkaline solution, and the bubged or distended by the car- With the handle 7 down,

the port or discharge-opening 18 of the I'the, fire and materially-assisting in its exrotary-val've 1 will be in. registration with 50 "aI. ,(1 the machine may now be used in extinguishmg either oil firesor any other inc1 %ent-.fire.

jthefoamgdischarge opening of the said T 3,

y Opening thecock 13 of-the dischargetinguishment, by reason of the fact that said bubbles are filled with carbonic-acid gas, which is not combustible.

In ordinary fires, where no oil is present, it ,may not be necessary to discharge any foam or bubbles, and in that case the operator turns the handle 7 back to the position -charge pipe T 3,

in which it is shown in Figs. 1 and 5, and leaves it there, which will rotate said foamvalve 1 and cut off the exit of foam or liquid by way of the discharge-opening of the disso that the only pathway for the escape of liquid from said tank will be through the said strainer 10 and pipe 11.

The liquid being thus discharged from the bottom of the tank, will be liquid only, as the foam or bubbles are located at or near the surface of the liquid in the tank.

It will thus be seen that I have provided a means, in a single unobstructed tank, for projecting either foam or a liquid, or a. combination of foam and liquid, as required.

From the above description, taken in connection with the drawing, it will be clear that I have provided a single valve which may be termed a proportioning which (when moved in the desired direction) controls and limits within a'reasonable range the proportion of foam and liquid that is discharged, as required for the service mentioned. 7 e

For instance, by moving the valve 1 to a more or less open or closed position, the foam-discharge opening of the said dis charge-pipe .T 3, will thereby be more or less opened or closed, with or less foam and liquid will be discharged by the machine.

In oil fires, a free flow' offoa'm should be permitted for an obvious reason.

By reason of the described construction and operation of my invention,'I. am enabled to use one apparatus for either oil fires or ordinary fires.

'At closerange, the

valve,

the result that more foam will be found very highly efiicient, but as foam cannot be thrown a great distance the liquid should be I thrown upon the greater distance the operator.

fire if the same is any than 15 feet away from I do not limit myself to the exact con- I struction shown in the drawings, as the same may be changed by skilled workmen without departing tion.

I claim the following as my invention:

1. The combination, with a single firefromthe scope of my inven- ,.apnaratus tank, of an acid-receptacle mount- 1ed.within said tank to empty .an acid into .a

body of foam-forming alkali contained in said tank; a discharge-pipe for the liquid alkali, extending vertically in said tank from a point near the bottom thereof to a position near the top of same; a dischargeconnection, with which the upper end of said discharge-pipe is in communication; a single valve located in said tank near the upper end of said discharge-pipe having a port opening to the interior of the tank and constructed to control the passage of foam from the top of the tank to the said dischargeconnection, and arranged when closed tc prevent foam from passing out of said tank, and to allow liquid to pass freely to said discharge-connection; and means extending from said single valve to said acid-receptacle and to the exterior of the tank, to move said acid-receptacle and said single valve simultaneously.

2. In a chemical fire-apparatus, a tank, a discharge connection for said tank, a suitable valve located on the interior of said tank to control the passage of 'foam to said discharge-connection, a combined acid-bottle holder and valve-stem connected to said valve and extending out through the wall of said tank to the exterior thereof, a handle 011 the projecting portion of said combined acid-bottle holder and valve-stem, for rotating the latter from the exterior of said tank, and an acid-container mounted upon said combined acid-bottle holder and Valve-stem, and adapted to be discharged of its acid by the rotation of the said combined acid-bottle holder and valve-stem.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

OSCAR J. HOLMES.

Witnesses:

HENRY L. HIonoN, JoHN C. HIGDON. 

